The Four Foolish Women
Introduction
Once upon a time, there was an old woman who lived in Norway. One day, she set out for the market to sell her old hen when she met the village butcher. The old woman thought to herself, “I can save some money by selling this hen to the butcher instead of bargaining in the market,” and so she asked him if he would like to buy it.
The Butcher’s Trick
“Me! Buy that scraggy old hen?” exclaimed the butcher. “Yes, why not?” replied the old woman. “I only want ten shillings for it.”
“You must be mad to expect me to pay that price,” said the butcher. “But I suppose you had better come back to my shop, and we will see if we can come to some arrangement over the price.”
Inside the shop, the butcher offered the old woman a glass of wine. She was so thirsty that by the time she finished, the bottle was empty. All this wine made her very sleepy, and the old woman soon dozed off. The butcher noticed she had fallen asleep, so he went to the back of his shop and fetched a tin of tar, an old brush, and a sack of chicken feathers. He then covered the woman’s clothes and face with tar and sprinkled the feathers over her.
A Shocking Awakening
A few hours later, the woman woke up to find the butcher gone, along with her money and the old hen. She caught sight of herself in the mirror and was shocked to see a feathered creature looking back at her. She was convinced she could not have grown feathers while asleep. To reassure herself, she decided to go back home and see if her livestock would recognize her. “If the calves and farm animals lick my hand and the dog doesn’t bark, I will know that I haven’t grown any feathers and am just the same as usual,” she said.
However, upon reaching her house, the dog barked, and the calves ran away.
A Desperate Search
“It isn’t me,” thought the old woman. “I have turned into some strange bird.” She climbed onto the roof and flapped her arms until they ached, but she could not fly. As evening approached, her husband returned to the cottage. He saw the strange creature on the roof and rushed into the house for his gun. As he aimed, his wife cried out, “Don’t shoot! Don’t shoot! It’s your wife. Don’t you recognize me?”
The farmer called her down from the roof and said, “I don’t want to live with a woman as foolish as you any longer. I am leaving home and won’t return until I have met three women who are more foolish than you.”
Meeting the First Foolish Woman
He had not gone far when he encountered a woman with a large basket. She was rushing in and out of a new house, trying to cover the basket with her apron. “Thank goodness someone has arrived,” she said upon seeing him. “I have been trying to take some sunlight inside the house with this basket because it is so dark inside, but so far I haven’t succeeded. I will give you five golden pounds if you help me.”
The crafty farmer thought, “Here is another foolish woman. This is an easy chance to make five pounds.” He said to the old woman, “I will certainly help you.”
He picked up an axe that was lying on the ground and knocked down one wall of the house. The foolish old woman was so pleased that her house was now filled with light that she immediately gave the farmer five golden pounds.
The Second Foolish Woman
The next day, as the farmer passed another house, he heard screams and yells coming from inside. Peering cautiously around the door, he saw a woman trying to pull something resembling a sack over a poor old man’s head. “Do you want to hurt that old man?” the farmer asked the woman. “No, I am trying to make an opening in this shirt so he can wear it,” she replied.
“Oh poor me,” groaned the old man. “I would willingly give ten golden pounds to the man who can put me out of this misery.” “Right,” said the farmer. “I will help you.” He took a pair of scissors and cut off the top of the man’s shirt. The man tried it on, and it fit perfectly. Grateful, he promptly gave ten pounds to the farmer, who walked away thinking this was the second foolish woman he had met.
The Widow’s Folly
That night, the farmer arrived at a cottage and asked for a room to stay. The owner’s husband had just died, and the widow could talk of nothing but the poor man. As they sat down for dinner, the widow asked, “Did you know my husband, Peter?” “Of course, I knew him,” said the crafty farmer. “I have just come down from Heaven.”
“Really! How was he?” she asked. “Poor man, I felt sorry for him. He didn’t have any money, clothes, or food, and he could not find a room to rent for the night.” “How terrible,” said the widow. “Will you do me a favour and take some of his things back to Heaven? Take some money, clothes, food, and his horse and cart, as I’m sure he will use them.”
In the morning, the man took all the things the widow had given him. Instead of going to Heaven as he had promised, he set off back home. Now he could return, knowing there were at least three women in the world who proved to be a great deal more foolish than his poor wife.